LOST AND FOUND
LOST AND FOUND
Luke 15:8–10
Luke chapter 15 records three of the most well-known parables Jesus ever told: the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. Some say these are three separate stories. Others say it is one story told from three different angles. Either way, the message is unmistakable—God cares deeply about the lost.
In a recent message, I preached from the third parable about the prodigal son. One phrase stood out to me in that passage: “and kissed him.” When the son came home, the father did not lecture him. He did not shame him. He simply embraced him and kissed him. That kiss said more than words ever could.
Today I want to step back a few verses and focus on the second parable in the chapter—the parable of the lost coin.
Jesus said:
This simple story reveals powerful truths about the condition of the lost and the heart of God toward them.
THE LOSTNESS OF THE COIN
The Bible says the woman “swept the house.” That tells us something about the environment where the coin was lost. In Bible times, homes often had dirt floors. The ground was sandy soil that people would sweep regularly.
Things would fall into that dirt—dust, debris, spilled food, and scraps from daily life. In many ways, the dirt acted like a place where everything unwanted was pushed aside and covered over.
Jesus’ description is intentional. It reminds us that living in a lost condition is like living in a dirty place spiritually.
Now let me be clear: I am not saying a lost person is worthless. But living apart from Christ is a dark and dirty place for the soul. Sin blinds us and separates us from God.
Sometimes people try to explain why someone is lost. They put labels on people’s lives and circumstances.
But the truth is simple: lost is lost.
In these three parables we see different reasons for lostness:
THE COIN DID NOT KNOW IT WAS LOST
The second truth we see is that the coin was ignorant of being lost.
The coin never cried out. It never called for help. It simply lay there in the dirt, unaware of its condition.
That picture reflects the spiritual reality of many people today.
The Bible says we are “dead in trespasses and sins.” A spiritually dead person does not recognize spiritual truth. They cannot fully understand their own lost condition.
Jeremiah wrote:
And Revelation describes people who think they are fine but are actually spiritually destitute:
That is the danger of being lost.
But an even greater danger is being lost and not knowing it.
THE COIN WAS LOST BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
The third truth in the story is this: the coin was lost, but it was not forgotten.
The woman had ten coins. When she realized one was missing, she did not shrug her shoulders and move on. She lit a candle. She swept the house. She searched diligently until she found it.
Why?
Because that one coin mattered.
The entire chapter of Luke 15 is not really about sheep, coins, or sons. It is about souls.
Every lost person matters to God.
The shepherd left ninety-nine sheep to find one.
The woman swept the house to find one coin.
The father waited and watched for one son to return home.
God wants us to see the worth of a single soul.
The song says it well: He thought I was worth saving.
And that is exactly the message Jesus was giving in these parables.
THE COIN WAS CLAIMED
Finally, we see that the coin was claimed when it was found.
Verse 9 says:
She did not merely notice it—she claimed it. She picked it up and restored it to its place.
The same thing happens when Christ saves a sinner.
Colossians reminds us:
And Peter wrote:
When Jesus finds a lost soul, He does more than forgive them. He brings them into His family.
We were once outside of mercy—but now we live under grace.
The Joy of Being Found
The woman in the story did something interesting when she found the coin. She called her friends and neighbors and said:
“Rejoice with me.”
Jesus said heaven does the same thing.
When one sinner repents, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God.
Imagine that. Heaven celebrates when someone comes to Christ.
And that leads to an important question.
Are you lost or found?
I remember the day my life changed forever. On March 24, 1991, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart in a church service. In a moment—faster than a blink of an eye—I went from being lost to being found because I trusted Christ as my Savior.
Do you have that testimony?
Can you say with confidence that you have been found?
If not, you do not have to remain lost. The same Savior who told this story is still seeking souls today. He still lights the candle, sweeps the house, and searches diligently.
And when He finds a sinner who turns to Him, heaven rejoices.
Why stay lost when you can be found?
Luke 15:8–10
Luke chapter 15 records three of the most well-known parables Jesus ever told: the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. Some say these are three separate stories. Others say it is one story told from three different angles. Either way, the message is unmistakable—God cares deeply about the lost.
In a recent message, I preached from the third parable about the prodigal son. One phrase stood out to me in that passage: “and kissed him.” When the son came home, the father did not lecture him. He did not shame him. He simply embraced him and kissed him. That kiss said more than words ever could.
Today I want to step back a few verses and focus on the second parable in the chapter—the parable of the lost coin.
Jesus said:
“Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost. Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.”
(Luke 15:8–10)
This simple story reveals powerful truths about the condition of the lost and the heart of God toward them.
THE LOSTNESS OF THE COIN
The Bible says the woman “swept the house.” That tells us something about the environment where the coin was lost. In Bible times, homes often had dirt floors. The ground was sandy soil that people would sweep regularly.
Things would fall into that dirt—dust, debris, spilled food, and scraps from daily life. In many ways, the dirt acted like a place where everything unwanted was pushed aside and covered over.
Jesus’ description is intentional. It reminds us that living in a lost condition is like living in a dirty place spiritually.
Now let me be clear: I am not saying a lost person is worthless. But living apart from Christ is a dark and dirty place for the soul. Sin blinds us and separates us from God.
Sometimes people try to explain why someone is lost. They put labels on people’s lives and circumstances.
But the truth is simple: lost is lost.
In these three parables we see different reasons for lostness:
- The sheep was lost through wandering.
- The son was lost through willful rebellion.
- The coin was lost through neglect.
THE COIN DID NOT KNOW IT WAS LOST
The second truth we see is that the coin was ignorant of being lost.
The coin never cried out. It never called for help. It simply lay there in the dirt, unaware of its condition.
That picture reflects the spiritual reality of many people today.
The Bible says we are “dead in trespasses and sins.” A spiritually dead person does not recognize spiritual truth. They cannot fully understand their own lost condition.
Jeremiah wrote:
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”
(Jeremiah 17:9)
And Revelation describes people who think they are fine but are actually spiritually destitute:
“Thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing… and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.”
(Revelation 3:17)
That is the danger of being lost.
But an even greater danger is being lost and not knowing it.
THE COIN WAS LOST BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
The third truth in the story is this: the coin was lost, but it was not forgotten.
The woman had ten coins. When she realized one was missing, she did not shrug her shoulders and move on. She lit a candle. She swept the house. She searched diligently until she found it.
Why?
Because that one coin mattered.
The entire chapter of Luke 15 is not really about sheep, coins, or sons. It is about souls.
Every lost person matters to God.
The shepherd left ninety-nine sheep to find one.
The woman swept the house to find one coin.
The father waited and watched for one son to return home.
God wants us to see the worth of a single soul.
The song says it well: He thought I was worth saving.
And that is exactly the message Jesus was giving in these parables.
THE COIN WAS CLAIMED
Finally, we see that the coin was claimed when it was found.
Verse 9 says:
“When she hath found it…”
She did not merely notice it—she claimed it. She picked it up and restored it to its place.
The same thing happens when Christ saves a sinner.
Colossians reminds us:
“Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son.”
(Colossians 1:13)
And Peter wrote:
“Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God.”
(1 Peter 2:10)
When Jesus finds a lost soul, He does more than forgive them. He brings them into His family.
We were once outside of mercy—but now we live under grace.
The Joy of Being Found
The woman in the story did something interesting when she found the coin. She called her friends and neighbors and said:
“Rejoice with me.”
Jesus said heaven does the same thing.
When one sinner repents, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God.
Imagine that. Heaven celebrates when someone comes to Christ.
And that leads to an important question.
Are you lost or found?
I remember the day my life changed forever. On March 24, 1991, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart in a church service. In a moment—faster than a blink of an eye—I went from being lost to being found because I trusted Christ as my Savior.
Do you have that testimony?
Can you say with confidence that you have been found?
If not, you do not have to remain lost. The same Savior who told this story is still seeking souls today. He still lights the candle, sweeps the house, and searches diligently.
And when He finds a sinner who turns to Him, heaven rejoices.
Why stay lost when you can be found?
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